1. Pick apples now and turn them into canned applesauce. Making it in the Crock-Pot is the most time-effective way for me. Then I can them into mason jars and freeze.

2. Cook with seasonal ingredients — squash, pumpkin and zucchini are all seasonal now. Go to allrecipes.com and look up recipes that you can cook with these ingredients.

3. Take advantage of fall items like canned pumpkin now, because often they are not around by Christmas. I like to bake loaves of pumpkin bread a few months before Christmas and freeze them, so when I have company, I have a nice breakfast treat already prepared.

Learn more money-saving tips from Greutman at the following seminar:
• Nov. 14, 7 to 9 p.m.: Black Friday Shopping Tips - The seminar is held at The Post-Standard, 101 N. Salina St., Syracuse. Registration is $10. Visit iamthatlady.com for more information and to register.

This Sunday’s coupon total will be: $211.22

Lauren Greutman, of Oswego, writes about saving money and using coupons — including those for local stores — at iamthatlady.com. She also teaches money-saving seminars across New York state through Savings Nation, powered by savings.com.